Mort

Young Mort despairs of finding a suitable career in his provincial village, until one day he is rather unexpectedly hired by a bony figure in a cowl – Death, it seems, is in need of an apprentice. Introduced to the chilly truth behind the workings of the universe, the inherently curious Mort cannot help but meddle with the laws of time and space. The resulting chaos means all manner of trouble for the stability of reality, not to mention his burgeoning love life …

Along with this stunning edition Folio have also created a limited edition, leather bound 'facsimile' of the very book that Death presents to Mort.

Terry Pratchett wasn’t simply a master of his genre, conjuring one of fiction’s strangest and most beloved fantasy realms in the form of the Discworld; he was also a master storyteller, and one of our greatest modern writers. In her introduction for this edition, A. S. Byatt describes his ‘maddening and delightful’ imagination, and how the core of his work always contained a ‘reflection on the nature and language of things’. Whether following the personification of Death to a curry house or threatening the great city of Ankh-Morpork with a dragon, Pratchett’s focus was always on the humanity of his characters. He knew their passions, failings, hopes and desperations, revealing them with compassion and wisdom – and if the truth bit a little close to home for the reader, a joke would be along at any moment to take away the sting.

‘His gift has always been in treating the big subjects with the lightest touch and in smuggling huge banks of wisdom past unsuspecting, giggling readers’New Statesman

Omar Rayyan, a long-time fan of the Discworld series, has provided 7 colour illustrations that capture the humour and vibrancy of Pratchett’s remarkable creation. This beautiful collector’s edition features printed endpapers illustrated by the artist, a slipcase printed with a silver line drawing, and a cover bound in tactile velveteen cloth, with an illustrated inset paper label. The spine sports a tiny silver A’Tuin, the great disc-carrying turtle – truly an edition fit for the Unseen University’s very own library.

Production Details

Bound in cloth with an inset paper label printed with an image by the artist

Set in Caslon

240 pages

Black & white title-page illustration; 7 colour illustrations

Printed endpapers and slipcase

9 ½" x 6 ¼"

About Terry Pratchett

Terry Pratchett was born in 1948 in Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire.
After leaving school he worked as a journalist and as
a press officer before becoming a full-time writer in 1987. He is the
author of the phenomenally successful Discworld series, which has
been published in translation worldwide. His other titles include
The Carpet People (1971), published when he was just twenty-three
years old; Good Omens (1990), a collaboration with Neil Gaiman;
Nation (2008); Dodger (2012); and The Long Earth series (2012–15),
a collaboration with Stephen Baxter. In 1998 he was appointed
OBE and in 2009 he was knighted for services to literature. Pratchett
died in March 2015.

About Omar Rayyan

Omar Rayyan is a US-based artist whose illustrations are featured
in various games, children’s publications, magazines and
illustrated books, including The Brown Fairy Book (2010) and
A Traveller in Time (2012) for The Folio Society. His work has
garnered many awards, including the Spectrum Fantastic Art Silver
and Gold Awards, and the Chesley’s Lifetime Achievement Award.
His paintings have been exhibited in museums and galleries around
the US and Europe, and grace the walls of many art collectors worldwide.
Omar currently resides on the island of Martha’s Vineyard off
the coast of Massachusetts.

'To attempt to capture the richness, humour, and depth of the illustrations (without rubbing too many fans and connoisseurs the wrong way) was a daunting task but a most enjoyable one - a dream job for any book illustrator'Omar Rayyan

About A. S. Byatt

A. S. Byatt is an internationally renowned novelist, poet and short-story writer. She studied at Newnham College, Cambridge, taught at the Central School of Art and Design, and was Senior Lecturer in English at University College, London, before returning to full-time writing in 1983. Her novels include the Booker Prize winning Possession (1990; Folio edition 2009), The Biographer’s Tale (2000) and The Children’s Book (2009). Her most recent novel, Ragnarok, was published in 2011. A distinguished critic as well as a writer of fiction, Byatt was appointed CBE in 1990 and DBE in 1999.

Reviews

"Discworld is among my favorite series and I am so happy Folio Society is releasing a Discworld collection.
I purchased this beautiful book in June, and I am very happy with it. The illustrations a..." [read more]

"Discworld is among my favorite series and I am so happy Folio Society is releasing a Discworld collection.
I purchased this beautiful book in June, and I am very happy with it. The illustrations are gorgeous! I like the texture on the book's cover, the slipcase is eye catching. Overall, this is a beautiful book and I have already ordered Small Gods as well.
I hope Folio Society will release more Discworld novels with this format and using this illustrator. Please please!
" [hide full review]

Review by davidstaffordtaylor@gmail.com on 8th Jul 2016

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5/5

"One of the most gorgeous books I have ever had the pleasure to own.
With the foliosociety I always expect a high standard, but this time they have truly outdone themselves. The book is gorgeous, n..." [read more]

"One of the most gorgeous books I have ever had the pleasure to own.
With the foliosociety I always expect a high standard, but this time they have truly outdone themselves. The book is gorgeous, not just the full page artwork which is fabulous, but the binding, the cover, the way it feels in your hand. I've purchased many books from folio before and always been happy, but rarely surprised. This one surprised me. It exceeded my expectations in every way. More like this please!! If you re even remotely interested in this one you should get it. You won't be disappointed. " [hide full review]

Review by stephanie.morton@live.com on 25th May 2016

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Rating:

5/5

"A stunning book which was even nicer than I expected. It has a magical but slightly whimsical character which complements the book perfectly."